Buddhist SuttasBuddhismAccepted ScripturePaliShareMaha-Parinibbana Sutta 3T. W. Rhys Davids / SBE vol. 11 - EnglishMoreVersion - 1 availableT. W. Rhys Davids / SBE vol. 11LanguageEnglishEspañol‹Maha-Parinibbana Sutta 1Maha-Parinibbana Sutta 2Maha-Parinibbana Sutta 3Maha-Parinibbana Sutta 4Maha-Parinibbana Sutta 5Maha-Parinibbana Sutta 6Dhamma-Cakka-Ppavattana Sutta 1Tevigga Sutta 1Tevigga Sutta 2Tevigga Sutta 3Akankheyya Sutta 1Cetokhila Sutta 1Maha-Sudassana Sutta 1Maha-Sudassana Sutta 2Sabbasava Sutta 1›Maha-Parinibbana Sutta 3: The Book of the Great DeceaseMaha-Parinibbana Sutta 3ListenPlay this chapter in spoken English.Save chapterListen to chapter2So the Blessed One proceeded to the Af&pala Afetiya, and when he had come there he sat down on the mat spread out for him, and the venerable Ananda took his seat respectfully beside him. Then the Blessed One addressed the venerable Ananda, and said: ‘How delightful a spot, Ananda, is Vesili, and the Udena ATetiya, and the Gotamaka ATetiya, and the Sattambaka ATetiya, and the Bahuputta ATetiya, and the Sdrandada Afetiya, and the Afapdla ATetiya. 3‘ Ananda! whosoever has thought out, deve¬ loped, practised, accumulated, and ascended to the very heights of the four paths to Iddhi 2, and so mastered them as to be able to use them as a means of (mental) advancement, and as a basis for edification, he, should he desire it, could remain in the same birth for a kalpa, or for that portion of the kalpa which had yet to run. Now the TatMgata has thought them out, and thoroughly practised and developed them [in all respects as just more fully described], and he could, therefore, should he desire it, live on yet for a kalpa, or for that portion of the kalpa which has yet to run.’ 4But even though a suggestion so evident and a hint so clear were thus given by the Blessed One, the venerable Ananda was incapable of comprehend¬ ing them; and he besought not the Blessed One, saying, ‘Vouchsafe, Lord, to remain during the kalpa! Live on through the kalpa, O Blessed One! for the good and the happiness of the great multi¬ tudes, out of pity for the world, for the good and the gain and the weal of gods and men! ’ So far was his heart possessed by the Evil One \ matter—a bodily condition corresponding to the mental condition of exaltation and power by which it was reached. On this curiously perverted exaggeration of the real influence of the mind over the body see, further, the translator’s ‘Buddhism,’ pp. 174-177. Two of the string of participles—y&nikata, which may possibly mean ‘made use of as a vehicle,’ and susamaraddha, ‘most thoroughly ascended up to ’—might seem to allude to Iddhi as a power of flying bodily through the air. But the whole set of participles is used elsewhere of conditions of mind highly esteemed among the Buddhists, and incapable of giving support to any such allusion. So, for instance, of universal love (metta) at Crataka II, 61. CH. 5A second and a third time did the Blessed One [say the same thing, and a second and a third time was Ananda’s heart thus hardened]. 6Now the Blessed One addressed the venera¬ ble Ananda, and said: ‘You may leave me, Ananda, awhile, and do whatever seemeth to thee fit.’ ‘ So be it, Lord! ’ said the venerable Ananda, in assent, to the Blessed, and rising from his seat he saluted the Blessed One, and passing him on the right, sat down at the foot of a certain tree not far off thence. 7Now not long after the venerable Ananda had been gone, Mira, the Evil One, approached the Blessed One, and stood beside him. And so stand¬ ing there, he addressed the Blessed One in these words: ‘ Pass away now, Lord, from existence; let the Blessed One now die. Now is the time for the Blessed One to pass away—even according to the fact is that they or v in such cases is even less than euphonic; it is an assistance not to the speaker, but merely to the writer. Thus in the Sinhalese duwanawa, ‘to run,’ the spoken word is duanawa, and the w is written only to avoid the awkward use in the middle of a word of the initial sign for the sound a. That the speakers of Pali found no difficulty in pronouncing two vowels together is abundantly proved by numerous instances. The writers of Pali, in those cases in which the second vowel begins a word, use without hesitation the initial sign; but in the middle of the word this would be so ungainly that they naturally prefer to insert a consonantal sign to carry the vowel sign. The varying readings I have pointed out are a strong confirmation of the cor¬ rectness of the pronunciation of modern native scholars; and we may the more readily adopt it as the question is not really one concerning the pronunciation of Pali, but concerning the use which modern native copyists make of their own alphabet. I would pro¬ nounce therefore pari-u///nta-£itto. word which the Blessed One spoke when he said 1: “ I shall not die, O Evil One! until the brethren and sisters of the order, and until the lay-disciples of either sex 2 shall have become true hearers, wise and well-trained, ready and learned, versed in the Scriptures, fulfilling all the greater and the lesser duties, correct in life, walking according to the pre¬ cepts—until they, having thus themselves learned the doctrine, shall be able to tell others of it, preach it, make it known, establish it, open it, minutely ex¬ plain it and make it clear—until they, when others start vain doctrine, shall be able by the truth to vanquish and refute it, and so to spread the wonder¬ working truth abroad! ” ’ 8‘And now, Lord, the brethren and sisters of the order and the lay-disciples of either sex have be¬ come [all this], are able to do [all this]. Pass away now therefore, Lord, from existence; let the Blessed One now die! The time has come for the Blessed One to pass away—even according to the word which he spake when he said, “ I shall not die, O Evil One! until this pure religion of mine shall have become successful, prosperous, widespread, and popular in all its full extent—until, in a word, it shall have been well proclaimed to men.” And now, Lord, this pure religion of thine has become [all this]. Pass away now therefore, Lord, from CH. existence; let the Blessed One now die! The time has come for the Blessed One to pass away!’ 9And when he had thus spoken, the Blessed One addressed Mira, the Evil One, and said: ‘ O Evil One! make thyself happy, the final extinction of the Tathigata shall take place before long. At the end of three months from this time the Tathagata will die! ’ 10Thus the Blessed One while at the Aapala Aetiya deliberately and consciously rejected the rest of his allotted sum of life. And on his so rejecting it there arose a mighty earthquake, awful and terrible, and the thunders of heaven burst forth. And when the Blessed One beheld this, he broke out at that time into this hymn of exultation: ‘ H is sum of life the sage renounced, The cause of life immeasurable or small; With inward joy and calm, he broke, Like coat of mail, his life’s own cause!’ 11Now the following thought occurred to the venerable Ananda: ‘ Wonderful indeed and marvel¬ lous is it that this mighty earthquake should arise, awful and terrible, and that the thunders of heaven should burst forth! What may be the proximate, what the remote cause of the appearance of this earthquake? ’ 12Then the venerable Ananda went up to the place where the Blessed One was, and did obeisance to the Blessed One, and seated himself respectfully at one side, and said: ‘ Wonderful indeed and mar¬ vellous is it that this mighty earthquake should arise, awful and terrible, and that the thunders of heaven should burst forth! What may be the proximate, what the remote cause of the appearance of this earthquake? ’ 13‘ Eight are the proximate, eight the remote causes, Ananda, for the appearance of a mighty earthquake. What are the eight? This great earth, Ananda, is established on water, the water on wind, and the wind rests upon space. And at such a time, Ananda, as the mighty winds blow, the waters are shaken by the mighty winds as they blow, and by the moving water the earth is shaken. These are the first causes, proximate and remote, of the appearance of a mighty earthquake. 14‘Again, Ananda, a Samara or a Brahman of great (intellectual) power, and who has the feelings of his heart well under his control; or a god or fairy (devata 1 ) of great might and power,—when such a CH. one by intense meditation of the finite idea of earth or the infinite idea of water (has succeeded in realising the comparative value of things J ) he can make this earth move and tremble and be shaken violently. These are the second causes, proximate or remote, of the appearance of a mighty earth¬ quake. 15‘Again, Ananda, when a Bodhisatta consciously and deliberately leaves his temporary form in the heaven of delight and descends into his mother’s womb, then is this earth made to quake and tremble and is shaken violently. These are the third causes, proximate or remote, of the appearance of a mighty earthquake 2. more particularly referred to in the passage of the text. Here all kinds of devatas being referred to, and there being no word in English for them all, I have ventured to put the word devata into my version, and to trouble the reader with this note. 16‘Again, Ananda, when a Bodhisatta deliberately and consciously quits his mother’s womb, then the earth quakes and trembles and is shaken violently. This is the fourth cause, proximate and remote, of the appearance of a mighty earthquake. 17‘Again, Ananda, when a Tathhgata arrives at the supreme and perfect enlightenment, then this earth quakes and trembles and is shaken violently. gathered about it. One is that on the night when she conceived his mother dreamt that a white elephant entered her side. The account will be found at length in my ‘Buddhist Birth Stories’ (pp. 62-64), and the earthquake is there mentioned in terms identical with those in the text. The sacred event is also one of those represented on the ancient bas-reliefs round the Bharhut Thupa, a full description of which will be found in General Cunningham’s most interesting work, ‘ The Stupa of Bharhut.’ General Cunning¬ ham says of the description placed above this sculpture: ‘ Above it in large characters is inscribed Bhagavato rukdanta, which may perhaps be translated, “ Buddha as the sounding elephant,” from ru, to sound, to make a particular sort of sound.’ Now the first word of the inscription is in the, genitive case, so that if the second word could mean an elephant, the whole would signify, ‘ The Buddha’s elephant.’ But the characters which General Cunningham reads rukdanta are, I venture to suggest, okkanti (? ukkanti); and the inscription simply says, ‘The descent of the blessed One.’ As I have pointed out in ‘Buddhism’ (p. 184), the white elephant legend is one of those hallowed sun stories by which half-con¬ verted Hindus have striven to embellish the life story of the Teacher whose followers they had become. In the Lalita Vistara (Calc. ed. p. 63) the entrance of the elephant into Mlyfi precedes the dream; but though the ignorant may have therefore accepted it as a fact, it is of course only a figure of speech—and I venture to think from the Hindu standpoint, a beautiful figure of speech— to express the incarnation of divine mildness and majesty in a human form. The use of such a figure is not confined to India. In the earliest of the Apocryphal Gospels, the Gospel according to the Hebrews, the incarnation of the divine gentleness and love is expressed by saying that a dove from heaven ‘ entered into ’ the human form. CH. This is the fifth cause, proximate and remote, of the appearance of a mighty earthquake. 18‘Again, Ananda, when a Tathigata founds the sublime kingdom of righteousness, then this earth quakes and trembles and is shaken violently. This is the sixth cause, proximate and remote, of the appearance of a mighty earthquake. 19‘Again, Ananda, when a Tathagata consciously and deliberately rejects the remainder of his life, then this earth quakes and trembles and is shaken violently. This is the seventh cause, proximate and remote, of the appearance of a mighty earthquake. 20‘Again, Ananda, when a Tathagata passes entirely away with that utter passing away in which nothing whatever is left behind, then this earth quakes and trembles and is shaken violently. This is the eighth cause, proximate and remote, of the appearance of a mighty earthquake. 21‘ Now of eight kinds, Ananda, are these as¬ semblies. Which are the eight 1? Assemblies of nobles, Brahmazzas, householders, and Samaras, and the angel hosts of the Guardian Angels, the Great Thirty-Three, Mara, and Brahma. 22‘ Now I call to mind, Ananda, how when I used to enter into an assembly of many hundred nobles, before I had seated myself there or talked to them or started a conversation with them, I used to become in colour like unto their colour, and in voice like unto their voice. Then with religious discourse I used to instruct, incite, and quicken them, and fill them with gladness. But they knew me not when I spoke, and would say, “Who may this be who thus speaks? a man or a god?’’ Then having instructed, incited, quickened, and gladdened them with reli¬ gious discourse, I would vanish away. But they knew me not even when I vanished away; and would say, “Who may this be who has thus vanished away? a man or a god?” ’ 23[And in the same words the Blessed One spake of how he had been used to enter into assem¬ blies of each of the other of the eight kinds, and of how he had not been made known to them either in speaking or in vanishing away.] ‘ Now these, Ananda, are the eight assemblies.’ 24‘ Now these, Ananda, are the eight positions of mastery [over the delusion arising from the apparent permanence of external things 1 ]. What are the eight? This and the next paragraph are based upon the Buddhist belief as to the long-vexed question between the Indian schools who represented more or less closely the European Idealists and Realists. When cleared of the many repetitions inserted for the benefit of the repeaters or reciters, the fundamental idea seems to be that the great necessity is to get rid of the delusion that what one sees and feels is real and permanent. Nothing is real and permanent but character. The so-called eight Positions of Mastery are merely an expan¬ sion of the first two of the following eight Stages of Deliverance, and the whole argument is also expressed in another form in the E CH. 25‘ When a man having subjectively the idea of form sees externally forms which are finite, and pleasant or unpleasant to the sight, and having mas¬ tered them, is conscious that he knows and sees— this is the first position of mastery. 26‘ When a man having subjectively the idea of form sees externally forms which are boundless, and pleasant or unpleasant to the sight, and having mas¬ tered them, is conscious that he knows and sees— this is the second position of mastery. 27‘When a man without the subjective idea of form sees externally forms which are finite, and plea¬ sant or unpleasant to the sight, and having mastered them, is conscious that he knows and sees—this is the third position of mastery. 28‘ When a man without the subjective idea of form sees externally forms which are boundless, and pleasant or unpleasant to the sight, and having mastered them, is conscious that he knows and sees —this is the fourth position of mastery. 29‘ When a man without the subjective idea of form sees externally forms that are blue in colour, blue in appearance, and reflecting blue,—just, for passage on the nine successive ‘ Cessations,’ of which an abstract will be found in Childers, sub voce nirodha. The two lists have been translated and commented upon by Burnout (Lotas de la Bonne Loi, pp. 543, 824-832), who took respectively. The former has been reprinted in Grimblot’s Sept regret that in my interpretation I have been compelled to differ so greatly from Burnouf. Though I have devoted much care and time to the subject, I do not suppose that I have understood it better than he did. We cannot hope to get to the bottom of what these old Buddhists thought about matter and mind from such cuit lists as these. instance, as the Ummi flower is blue in colour, blue in appearance, and reflecting blue; or, again, as that fine muslin of Benares which, on whichever side you look at it, is blue in colour, blue in appearance, and reflecting blue,—when a man without the subjective idea of form sees externally forms which, just in that way, are blue, blue in colour, blue in appearance, and reflecting blue, and having mastered them, is conscious that he knows and sees—that is the fifth position of mastery.’ 30-32. [The sixth, seventh, and eighth positions of mastery are explained in words identical with those used to explain the fifth; save that yellow, red, and white are respectively substituted throughout for blue; and the Kawikira flower, the Bandhu-^ivaka flower, and the morning star are respectively substi¬ tuted for the Umma flower, as the first of the two objects given as examples.] 331 Now these stages of deliverance, Ananda [from the hindrance to thought arising from the sensations and ideas due to external forms *], are eight in number. Which are the eight? 34‘A man possessed with the idea of form sees forms—this is the first stage of deliverance. 35‘Without the subjective idea of form, he sees forms externally—this is the second stage of deli¬ verance. E 2 CH. 361 With the thought “ it is well,” he becomes intent (upon what he sees)—this is the third stage of deliverance. 37‘By passing quite beyond all idea of form, by putting an end to all idea of resistance, by paying no attention to the idea of distinction, he, thinking “ it is all infinite space,” reaches (mentally) and re¬ mains in the state of mind in which the idea of the infinity of space is the only idea that is present— this is the fourth stage of deliverance. 38‘ By passing quite beyond all idea of space being the infinite basis, he, thinking “ it is all infinite reason,” reaches (mentally) and remains in the state of mind to which the infinity of reason is alone present—this is the fifth stage of deliverance. 39‘ By passing quite beyond the mere conscious¬ ness of the infinity of reason, he, thinking “ nothing at all exists,” reaches (mentally) and remains in the state of mind to which nothing at all is specially present—this is the sixth stage of deliverance. 401 By passing quite beyond all idea of nothing¬ ness he reaches (mentally) and remains in the state of mind to which neither ideas nor the absence of ideas are specially present—this is the seventh stage of deliverance. 41‘By passing quite beyond the state of “neither ideas nor the absence of ideas ” he reaches (men¬ tally) and remains in the state of mind in which both sensations and ideas have ceased to be—this is the eighth stage of deliverance. 42‘Now these, Ananda, are the eight stages of deliverance. 43‘ On one occasion, Ananda, I was resting under the shepherd’s Nigrodha tree on the bank of the river N era/h^ara immediately after having reached the great enlightenment. Then Mara, the Evil One, came, Ananda, to the place where I was, and standing beside me he addressed me in the words: “ Pass away now, Lord, from existence! Let the Blessed One now die! Now is the time for the Blessed One to pass away! ” 44‘ And when he had thus spoken, Ananda, 1 addressed Mara, the Evil One, and said: “ I shall not die, O Evil One! until not only the brethren and sisters of the order, but also the lay-disciples of either sex shall have become true hearers, wise and well-trained, ready and learned, versed in the Scriptures, fulfilling all the greater and the lesser duties, correct in life, walking according to the pre¬ cepts—until they, having thus themselves learned the doctrine, shall be able to tell others of it, preach it, make it known, establish it, open it, minutely ex¬ plain it and make it clear—until they, when others start vain doctrine, shall be able by the truth to vanquish and refute it, and so to spread the wonder¬ working truth abroad! 45‘“I shall not die until this pure religion of mine shall have become successful, prosperous, wide-spread, and popular in all its full extent— until, in a word, it shall have been well proclaimed among men!” 46‘And now again to-day, Ananda, at the Afapdla ATetiya, Mara, the Evil One, came to the place where I was, and standing beside me addressed me [in the same words]. 47‘ And when he had thus spoken, Ananda, I answered him and said: “ Make thyself happy, the final extinction of the Tathagata shall take place CH. before long. At the end of three months from this time the Tath&gata will die!” 48‘Thus, Ananda, the Tath&gata has now to-day at the Af&pila Aetiya consciously and deli¬ berately rejected the rest of his allotted term of life.’ 49And when he had thus spoken the venera¬ ble Ananda addressed the Blessed One, and said: ‘Vouchsafe, Lord, to remain during the kalpa! live on through the kalpa, O Blessed One! for the good and the happiness of the great multitudes, out of pity for the world, for the good and the gain and the weal of gods and men! ’ 50‘ Enough now, Ananda, beseech not the Ta¬ thagata! ’ was the reply. ‘ The time for making such request is past.’ 51And again, the second time, the venerable Ananda besought the Blessed One [in the same words. And he received from the Blessed One the same reply]. 52And again, the third time, the venerable Ananda besought the Blessed One [in the same words]. 53‘ Hast thou faith, Ananda, in the wisdom of the Tathagata?’ ‘ Even so, Lord!’ ‘ Now why, then, Ananda, dost thou trouble the Tathagata even until the third time V 54‘ From his own mouth have I heard from the Blessed One, from his own mouth have I received this saying, “ Whosoever has thought out, Ananda, and developed, practised, accumulated, and ascended to the very heights of the four paths to saintship, and so mastered them as to be able to use them as a means of (mental) advancement, and as a basis for edification—he, should he desire it, could remain in the same birth for a kalpa, or for that portion of a kalpa which has yet to run.” Now the Tathdgata has thought out and thoroughly practised them [in all respects as just now fully described], and might, should he desire it, remain alive for a kalpa, or for that portion of a kalpa which has yet to run.’ 551 Hast thou faith, Ananda?’ ‘ Even so, Lord! ’ ‘ Then, O Ananda, thine is the fault, thine is the offence—in that when a suggestion so evident and a hint so clear were thus given thee by the Tathagata, thou wast yet incapable of comprehending them, and thou beso ugh test not the Tathigata, saying, “ Vouch¬ safe, Lord, to remain during the kalpa. Live on, O Blessed One! through the kalpa for the good and the happiness of the great multitudes, out of pity for the world, for the good and the gain and the weal of gods and men.” If thou shouldst then have so besought the Tathagata, the Tathdgata might have rejected the appeal even to the second time, but the third time he would have granted it. Thine, there¬ fore, O Ananda, is the fault, thine is the offence!’ 56‘ On one occasion, Ananda, I was dwelling at Ra^agaha, on the hill called the Vulture’s Peak. Now there, Ananda, I spoke to thee, and said: “ How pleasant a spot, Ananda, is Ra^agaha; how pleasant is this Vulture’s Peak. Whosoever has thought out, Ananda, and developed, practised, accu¬ mulated, and ascended to the very heights of the four paths to saintship, and so mastered them as to be able to use them as a means of (mental) advance¬ ment, and as a basis for edification—he, should he CH. desire it, could remain in the same birth for a kalpa, or for that portion of a kalpa which has yet to run. But even when a suggestion so evident and a hint so clear were thus given thee by the Tathagata, thou wast yet incapable of comprehending them, and thou besoughtest not the Tathdgata, saying, ‘ Vouchsafe, Lord, to remain during the kalpa. Live on, O Blessed One! through the kalpa for the good and the happiness of the great multitudes, out of pity for the world, for the good and the gain and the weal of gods and men.’ If thou shouldst then have so besought the Tathagata, the Tathagata might have rejected the appeal even to the second time, but the third time he would have granted it. Thine, therefore, O Ananda, is the fault, thine is the offence!” 581 Now there too, Ananda, I spoke to thee, and said: “How pleasant, Ananda, is Ragagaha; how pleasant the Vulture’s Peak; how pleasant the Banyan tree of Gotama; how pleasant the Robbers’ Cliff; how pleasant the Sattapa mix cave on the slope of Mount Vebhara; how pleasant the Black Rock on the slope of Mount Isigili; how pleasant the mountain cave Sappaso^Aka in the Sitavana Grove; how pleasant the Tapoda Grove; how plea¬ sant the Squirrels’ Feeding Ground in the Bambu Grove; how pleasant Givaka’s Mango Grove; how pleasant the Deer Forest at MaddakuAf/fi! 59‘ “ Whosoever, Ananda, has thought out and developed, practised, accumulated, and ascended to the very heights of the four paths to saintship, and so mastered them as to be able to use them as a means of (mental) advancement and as a basis for edification—he, should he desire it, could remain in the same birth for a kalpa, or for that portion of a kalpa which has yet to run.” Now the Tathagata has thought out and thoroughly practised them [in all respects as just now fully described], and might, should he desire it, remain alive for a kalpa, or for that portion of a kalpa which has yet to run.’ 60‘ On one occasion, Ananda, I was residing here at Vesali at the Udena Aetiya. And there too, Ananda, I spoke to thee, and said: “ Flow pleasant, Ananda, is Vesali; how pleasant the Udena Aetiya. Whosoever, Ananda, has thought out and developed, practised, accumulated, and ascended to the very heights of the four paths to saintship, and so mastered them as to be able to use them as a means of (mental) advancement and as a basis for edification—he, should he desire it, could remain in the same birth for a kalpa, or for that portion of a kalpa which has yet to run.” Now the Tathagata has thought out and thoroughly practised CH. them [in all respects as just now fully described], and might, should he desire it, remain alive for a kalpa, or for that portion of a kalpa which has yet to run.’ 61‘On one occasion, Ananda, I was dwelling here at Vesili at the Gotamaka ATetiya-—on one occa¬ sion here at Veshli at the Sattamba ATetiya—on one occasion here atVesali at the Bahuputta A'etiya— on one occasion here at VesAli at the Sarandada A'etiya [and on each occasion I spoke to thee, Ananda, in the same words]. 62‘ And now to-day, Ananda, at the Aapala A'etiya, I spoke to thee, and said: “ How pleasant, Ananda, is Vesali; how pleasant the Udena A'etiya; how pleasant the Gotamaka A'etiya; how pleasant the Sattamba A'etiya; how pleasant the Bahuputta A'etiya; how pleasant the Sarandada A'etiya. Who¬ soever, Ananda, has thought out and developed, practised, accumulated, and ascended to the very heights of the four paths to saintship, and so mas¬ tered them as to be able to use them as a means of (mental) advancement, and as a basis for edification— he, should he desire it, could remain in the same birth for a kalpa, or for that portion of a kalpa which has yet to run. Now the Tathagata has thought and thoroughly practised them [in all respects as just now fully described], and might, should he desire it, remain alive for a kalpa, or for that portion of a kalpa which has yet to run.” 63‘ But now, Ananda, have I not formerly 1 dedared to you that it is in the very nature of all things, near and dear unto us, that we must divide ourselves from them, leave them, sever ourselves from them? How then, Ananda, can this be pos¬ sible—whereas anything whatever born, brought into being, and organised, contains within itself the inherent necessity of dissolution—how then can this be possible that such a being should not be dis¬ solved? No such condition can exist! And this mortal being, Ananda, has been relinquished, cast away, renounced, rejected, and abandoned by the Tathagata. The remaining sum of life has been surrendered by him. Verily, the word has gone forth from the TathAgata, saying, “ The final extinc¬ tion of the TathAgata shall take place before long. At the end of three months from this time the Tathagata will die!” That the Tathagata for the sake of living should repent him again of that saying—this can no wise be 1!’ 64‘ Come, Ananda, let us go to the Ku/AgAra Hall, to the Mahavana.’ ‘ Even so, Lord! ’ said the venerable Ananda, in assent, to the Blessed One. Then the Blessed One proceeded, with Ananda phrase occurs pretty often. Trenckner (milinda-pawhawz, p. 422) proposes a correction into pa/ikaM’ eva. Palog^-iti just below is noteworthy as an unusual contraction of palu^e iti. 6o CH. with him, to the Mahavana to the Ku/agara Hall: and when he had arrived there he addressed the venerable Ananda, and said: ‘ Go now, Ananda, and assemble in the Service Hall such of the brethren as reside in the neigh¬ bourhood of Vesali.’ ‘ Even so, Lord,’ said the venerable Ananda, in assent, to the Blessed One. And when he had as¬ sembled in the Service Hall such of the brethren as resided in the neighbourhood of Vesali, he went to the Blessed One and saluted him and stood beside him. And standing beside him, he addressed the Blessed One, and said: ‘ Lord! the assembly of the brethren has met together. Let the Blessed One do even as seemeth to him fit.’ 65Then the Blessed One proceeded to the Service Hall, and sat down there on the mat spread out for him. And when he was seated the Blessed One addressed the brethren, and said: ‘ Therefore, O brethren—ye to whom the truths I have perceived have been made known by me— having thoroughly made yourselves masters of them, practise them, meditate upon them, and spread them abroad; in order that pure religion may last long and be perpetuated, in order that it may con¬ tinue to be for the good and happiness of the great multitudes, out of pity for the world, to the good and the gain and the weal of gods and men! ‘Which then, O brethren, are the truths which, when I had perceived, I made known to you, which, when you have mastered it behoves you to practise, meditate upon, and spread abroad, in order that pure religion may last long and be perpetuated, in order that it may continue to be for the; good and the happiness of the great multitudes, out of pity for the world, to the good and the gain and the weal of gods and men?’ They are these: The four earnest meditations. The fourfold great struggle against sin. The four roads to saintship. The five moral powers. The five organs of spiritual sense. The seven kinds of wisdom, and The noble eightfold path. These, O brethren, are the truths which, when I had perceived, I made known to you, which, when you have mastered it behoves you to practise, meditate upon, and spread abroad, in order that pure religion may last long and be perpetuated, in order that it may continue to be for the good and the happiness of the great multitudes, out of pity for the world, to the good and the gain and the weal of gods and men! 66And the Blessed One exhorted the brethren, and said: ‘ Behold now, O brethren, I exhort you, saying, “All component things must grow old. Work out your salvation with diligence. The final extinction of the Tathagata will take place before long. At the end of three months from this time the Tatha¬ gata will die!” ‘ My age is now full ripe, my life draws to its close: I leave you, I depart, relying on myself alone! Be earnest then, O brethren! holy, full of thought! CH. Be steadfast in resolve! Keep watch o’er your own hearts! Who wearies not, but holds fast to this truth and law 1, Shall cross this sea of life, shall make an end of grief.’ The following are the details of the aggregate technical terms used in the above summary, but it will be understood that the English equivalents used give rather a general than an exact representation of the ideas expressed by the Pali ones. To attempt more would demand a treatise rather than a note, and it has given me peculiar pleasure to learn, as these sheets are passing through the press, that my friend Dr. Morris intends to devote a book to the treatment of these seven ‘Jewels of the Law,’ as the.Arulla Vagga calls them (IX, i, 4), which form, when united, the bright diadem of Nirv&tta. The four Earnest Meditations (/fattSro Satipa//Mna) are— 2Meditation on the sensations. 4Meditation on reason and character. The fourfold Great Struggle against sin is divided into /fattiro Samappadhana, which are— 1The struggle to prevent sinfulness arising. 2The struggle to put away sinful states which have arisen. 3The struggle to produce goodness not previously existing. 4The struggle to increase goodness when it does exist. The four Roads to Saintship are four means by which Iddhi (see above, § 3, note) is to be acquired. They are the A'attaro Iddhipada: 1The will to acquire it united to earnest meditation and the struggle against sin. 2The necessary exertion united to earnest meditation and the struggle against sin. 3The necessary preparation of the heart united to earnest meditation and the struggle against sin. 4Investigation united to earnest meditation and the struggle against sin. The five moral powers (pa»^a Balani) are said to be the same as the next class, called organs (IndriySni). It is no doubt most remarkable that, in a summary like this, two classes out of seven should be absolutely identical except in name. The differ¬ ence of name is altogether too unimportant to account, by itself, for the distinction made. Either the currently accepted explanation of one of the two aggregate terms must be incorrect, or we must look for some explanation of the repetition other than the mere desire to record the double title. Is it impossible that the one class was split into two to bring the number of the classes up to the sacred number seven, corresponding to the seven Ratanas of aA'akkavatti? The details of both classes are— 1Faith. 2. Energy. 3. Thought. 4. Contemplation. 5Wisdom. The seven kinds of Wisdom (satta Bo^/fanga) are— 1Energy. 2. Thought. 3. Contemplation. 4. Investiga¬ tion (of scripture). 5. Joy. 6. Repose. 7. Serenity. The Noble Eightfold Path (ariyo a/Mangiko Maggo) forms volume, and consists of— 1Right views. 2. High aims. 3. Right speech, 4. Upright conduct. 5. A harmless livelihood. 6. Perseverance in well-doing. 7Intellectual activity. 8. Earnest thought. CH. ‹Previous chapterMaha-Parinibbana Sutta 2Next chapterMaha-Parinibbana Sutta 4›Similar passagesBy tradition and source labelFind similarCompare selectedCompare with similarAsk Deep ThoughtSelect passages to search for parallels.Tap any verse to select it, then compare selected passages or ask Deep Thought. Public-domain 1881 English translation